Effects of the Colts-Jets trade

Light your mock drafts on fire. The landscape of the draft changed significantly following a trade that took place on Saturday morning between the New York Jets and Indianapolis Colts. Here’s what went down:

Let’s take a deeper look at how this trade impacted the teams involved as well as how it affected others:

New York Jets: It seems that the Jets have identified who they want as their quarterback. Teams nowadays should identify a particular one they want leading their franchise moving forward and do what it takes to get him, and the Jets might have done just that. But why only trade up to the #3 pick? I think it’s one of two reasons:

a. They have confidence that the QB they’re interested in will be available with the pick

b. They would have had to secrifice too much to move up to #2.

Either way, if they end up with their franchise QB, it’s always a win.

Indianapolis Colts: This is a brilliant move by general manager Chris Ballard and the gang. The Colts lose nothing and gain a ton with this trade. They already have their franchise QB in Andrew Luck. As much as four of the first five picks could be spent on QBs, resulting in elite talent falling to their #6 selection. In addition, they have two extra opportunities to get impact players this year and again in 2019 with the three 2nd round picks they received in total. This trade is a big step in the rebuilding process.

While they weren’t directly involved in the trade, there were definitely other teams out there that were affected:

Buffalo Bills: The pressure is on for the Bills Mafia to find a way to climb to the #2 pick. It’s clearly nowhere near a safe enough bet to sit back and wait for a signal-caller to fall to their pick at #12. Expect them to be in the center of a heated bidding war for the New York Giants’s pick.

Cleveland Browns: It’s now a certainty that the #1 overall pick will be spent on finding their man under center (presumably USC’s Sam Darnold) rather than Saquon Barkley. But all of a sudden, their #4 pick has become so much more valuable. Cleveland can expect to be fielding offers for their second first rounder and could get a lot of return by moving out of that spot. If they remain, however, there’s a chance that the stud Penn State running back will be there with the 4th pick. With QB-needy teams potentially battling for the #2 selection, if a trade were to happen, it would be to get a quarterback, making all of the first three picks a quarterback. It would be excellent for the Browns, as they would find a big-time weapon to boost the play of their (hopefully) franchise savior.

Denver Broncos: The Broncos are the 4th QB-needy team in the draft, and having the #5 overall pick may not be enough to land the franchise passer they desire. Along with the Bills, they could end up being solid contenders to trade with the Giants, and if it were to go through, John Elway has the man he wants taking the snaps for Denver.